Page 58 - Loyalty Described in the Qur'an

LOYALTY DESCRIBED IN THE QUR'AN
ers His mercy. Throughout their lives, they make Allah their
guardian, and worship Him, making the morality of the religion
sincerely His. Believers are never lax in their efforts to strengthen
their faith, demonstrating that their faithfulness to Allah has

achieved for them true firmness.

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T They Make a Concerted Effort to Attain the Afterlife
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In order to win Allah's favor, and attain Paradise, believers put
forth great effort, this being a sign of their faithfulness towards Allah.
In the Qur'an, our Lord says that believers are responsible to expend
this great effort in order to win His favor and attain Paradise. They ex-
pend this effort in combating their lower-selves, to preserve their faith,
to be among those most pleasing to Allah, and to tell others about the
superior morality that Allah revealed in the Qur'an. This effort on the
part of the believers is possible because of the willpower that derives
from their submission to Allah. The zeal that Allah makes them feel in
their hearts will be as strong as their faith in Him. In the Qur'an, Allah
advises believers to put forth serious effort on His way:
But as for anyone who desires the Hereafter, and strives for
it with the striving it deserves, being a believer, the striving
of such people will be gratefully acknowledged. (Surat al-
Isra', 19)
So, believers exert effort, first of all, to bring their lower-selves
into a condition that will please Allah. It is not possible for a disbe-
liever—as long as he does not embrace faith—to struggle with his
lower-self, or make a concerted effort in this struggle. Many live their
lives far removed from the moral teaching of the Qur'an, completely
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